Expansion Gap For Allure Vinyl Planks

Here are some tips for leaving an expansion gap easily.

Expansion gap for allure vinyl planks.

Floating vinyl and expansion gaps. I m installing about 1 000 square feet of trafficmaster allure ultra vinyl plank flooring. Vinyl plank doesn t need lots of expansion gaps. The instructions say to leave a 1 8 perimeter gap but do not say anything about an expansion gap at a certain maximum run length or between rooms.

A floating floor usually needs 5 10mm the loose planks will absorb heat and expand like any flooring material some more than others so you run the risk of it buckling. If the planks are cut make sure the cut edge is facing the wall. Just enough to absorb the smaller amount of expansion a bonded vinyl floor moves. What does an expansion gap look like.

In the colder weather the opposite is true and the floor can contract leaving gaps between two of the tiles. You can simply pour a waterproof epoxy resin into the gaps or using a grout by simply smearing this on and then painting it the same shade as the vinyl flooring. As the material becomes warmer it can expand slightly causing the floor to buckle. Sunlight heat one of the major causes of buckling in vinyl plank flooring is expansion and contraction of the material.

You can also use varnished wood cut pieces which can be painted dark to finish the wood floor impact. This helps keep the floor from buckling and working itself apart as it expands and contracts with temperature changes. My installation area is roughly l shaped and the long runs will be on the order of 40 45 feet. You just leave 1 4 inch between the wall and planks.

Only a tiny amount will be needed for each gap. Leave a gap of about inch between the floor and the wall on all sides. Installing gripstrip vinyl plank flooring lay the first row of vinyl plank flooring along the wall leaving the manufacturer recommended amount of expansion space between the plank s edge and the wall usually about 1 4 inch. Tongue and groove vinyl the kind that snaps together like laminate is a different story.

From the image it looks like a fairly small gap. With these you need that expansion gap just like you do on other types of floating floors. If you have fairly small gaps then one solution would be to pour a water proof epoxy resin into the gaps. Gaps are usually 5 16 between the outside edge of the floor the perimeter and the obstruction see featured image.